Buccaneers great addresses major Rueben Bain Jr. concern

Both before and after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers made Miami edge-rusher Rueben Bain Jr. the 15th overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft, coaches and other members of the football community suggested that arm-length concerns made him a difficult prospect to trust as it pertains to achieving success at the highest level. 

Meanwhile, retired defensive lineman Gerald McCoy earned six Pro Bowl nods while playing for the Buccaneers from 2010 through the 2018 season. During a recent chat with Kyle Odegard of Heavy, McCoy touched upon the topic that is going to hover over Bain's status until the rookie starts facing opposing offenses during meaningful games. 

Gerald McCoy is not at all worried about Rueben Bain Jr.

"If you have somebody that talented and that gifted athletically, I’m taking that all day," McCoy said. "Because the kid can play football. There are a lot of people that have all the measurables, but they can’t play football. He knows how to play football. And that can be coached. So I’m not worried about it at all." 

Throughout the spring, Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht repeatedly dismissed concerns about Bain's arm length. In fact, Licht was worried that Bain would go off the board before Tampa Bay would have been able to scoop the prospect up at pick No. 15. 

"I do not fall into the category of worrying about your arm length," McCoy explained. "I can teach any defensive lineman of his talent and athletic caliber to use what they have. The problem is these coaches are only coaches in title only. The definition of a coach is to take important people from where they are to where they want to be." 

Gerald McCoy plans to get a good look at Rueben Bain Jr. later this summer

For a piece published on June 29, ESPN's Jenna Laine shared that "the Bucs were ecstatic that Bain fell to them, and that excitement has only grown as they've seen not only his power, his bend, his leverage and his violent hands up close -- but also his instincts for the position." 

McCoy plans to see such traits up close, as he told Odegard he will attend at least one training-camp session in August. 

"I’ve been checking in with the coaches to make sure everything is copasetic," McCoy added about Bain. "I’m going to get out there at some point during training camp so I can get face-to-face with him and have some conversations."

Perhaps being mentored by McCoy will help Bain do more than just compete for Defensive Rookie of the Year Award honors from September through early January 2027.